SAVE CARE NOW

Conference welcomes the continuing progress being made with UNISON’s Ethical Care Charter and the broader campaign rebranded ‘Save Care Now’. Social care budgets in England have been slashed by £2.68 billion in the last three years. The government claims the 2% precept English councils have been permitted to add to Council Tax will raise £2 […]

A TAX FREE STATE PENSION

This Conference regrets that there is no automatic notification to HMRC to adjust tax codes to account for the receipt of State Pension. Despite low occupational pensions, the receipt of State Pension frequently puts retired members above the level of personal allowance (£11,000 for 2016/17) and therefore liable for payment of tax. It is everyone’s […]

DISCRIMINATION AGAINST RETIRED PEOPLE

Our 2014 Conference instructed the National Retired Members Committee and the National Executive Council to resist moves to make access for retired people to goods, services benefits and social communications available only via the internet. Sadly this process continues with many service providers such as banks, building societies, energy providers and travel companies only offering […]

RETIRED MEMBERS AND THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT PENSIONS SCHEME

Since the implementation of the proposals of the 2011 Lord Hutton enquiry the significant changes to the Local Government Pension Scheme have produced a knock on effect that affects existing pensioners and those with deferred benefits as well as our current serving colleagues. Putting to one side the imposition of higher contributions and later retirement […]

RURAL BUS SERVICES

Conference is concerned at the government cuts to councils for bus services, £27m in the current year and the impact this will have on rural communities who depend on bus services to get around. Rural bus services are being wiped out in many areas of England and Wales due to cuts in subsidies. Described by […]

TICKETLESS TRAIN TRAVEL

Conference is concerned to learn that the rail industry is planning to replace paper train tickets with smartphone technology within three years and the impact this will have on older/elderly travellers who it is feared will be subsidising younger generations. Campaign group Railfuture has warned that elderly people who do not have smartphones and will […]

LOCAL GOVERNMENT PENSIONS – GOVERNANCE ARRANGEMENTS

Conference notes that the government is proposing new Local Government Pension Scheme investment regulations and asset pooling. Whilst there could be advantages in the pooling of LGPS funds, should this go forward, the proposal also gives new power to the government to decide where council pension funds make investments. As such, Conference fully endorses UNISON’s […]

A stronger, growing Passenger Transport Forum

Over the last year UNISON has done a huge amount of work to save the Passenger Transport Forum (PTF) as a functioning negotiating body. In 2015, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) management gave notice to exit the negotiating element of the PTF, citing a need for greater “flexibility.” UNISON has a proud tradition of defending […]

Continuing to increase the participation of Black members in WET

Conference notes the resolution from last year’s WET conference to look at increasing Black member participation in the service group. When looking at measurements of engagement such as representation on branch and national committees and attendance at service group and Black members’ conferences the activism levels of Black members in WET remains an area of […]

Equal pensions for WET workers

Conference welcomes the growing recognition of same sex partnerships, including the 2005 Civil Partnership Act and the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Acts that came into force in England and Wales and in Scotland in 2014. However, conference echoes UNISON’s condemnation of the inequality entrenched in these laws with regard to surviving partner workplace pensions. The […]

Working Time Regulations and the Water Industry

Conference notes that Working Time Regulations stipulate that workers must have: At least a twenty minute break if they work more than six hours a day; At least eleven hours rest between working days, and; at least an uninterrupted twenty four hour rest without any work each week or an uninterrupted forty eight hours without […]

Securing Adequate Funding for Flood Defences

WET Conference 2016 will remember the devastation caused by floods in late 2015 in Cumbria, Lancashire and Yorkshire in particular which had a devastating effect on the general public including many UNISON members both as employees and victims of the floods. Inadequate resources by this Tory Government have played a major part in flood defences […]

Age Discrimination in Higher Education

With rising pension ages both in the State and Employers Pension Scheme, Higher Education will see an increase in the age of its workforce. The Equality Act 2010 makes it unlawful to discriminate against employees because of their age. Age discrimination can impact on someone’s confidence, job prospects, financial situation and quality of life. Older […]

Information Is Power

This Conference believes that the growth of privatisation and outsourcing in Higher Education presents a major challenge not just to the provision of services, but also to our ability to organise the workforce effectively. This Conference believes that the service group’s response to this challenge must be to support branches seeking to resist privatisation and […]

Equality rights and collective agreements in higher education

Conference notes that it was our union’s national collective bargaining that established many equality protections long before they were enshrined in law. For example, our predecessor unions secured recognition of same sex partners for the purposes of workplace benefits before workplace discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation was banned and many years before the first […]